The Week In Review
9/27-10/1/10
October 1, 2010U.S. stocks on Friday opened the new quarter with gains after data pointed to robust manufacturing growth in China. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 67 points to 10,856. The S&P 500 Index rose 8 points to 1,149. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 18 points to 2,387. A good opening to start the new month and quarter with new cash flooding into the markets. On the earnings front, Accenture is up 6% following better than expected earnings. The commodities are performing well with gold, copper, oil, and other precious metals shooting higher. Freeport McMoran, Cliffs Natural Resources, and the fertilizers are all trading higher. Agrium is trading higher after signing a deal with Indonesian. The banks are trading higher even though Wells Fargo lowered numbers for a number of big banks. KeyCorp is up 3% on an upgrade. Eaton is higher on an upgrade. Metlife is higher after easing concerns about forward earnings. The techs are performing well. IBM is at new highs after HP announced a new CEO last night. HP is down nearly 3%. Google and Intel are higher on upgrades. Amazon was upgraded, but the stock is lower by 3%. Within the first hour the averages rallied, sold off, rallied, and then pulled back once again. A couple other earnings reports this morning. Christopher & Banks is down 15% following earnings. Lawson Software is down 2% after beating estimates. Through the morning and into the afternoon the averages slowly recovered with the Dow moving back into the green. The Nasdaq is still at the unchanged level. A couple of stocks are standing out for this first trading day of the fourth quarter. IBM is at a new high while Goldman Sachs and Freeport McMoRan are trading up 2% or more. The financials in general are performing well. In the last hour the averages remained in the green to start the new quarter. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 41 points at 10,829, with 22 of its 30 components ending higher. The S&P 500 index rose 5 points to 1,146, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 2 points to 2,370. For the week, the three major averages closed modestly lower. Can't complain.
September 30, 2010
U.S. stocks opened higher Thursday after reports on U.S. economic growth and the labor market beat expectations. Up more than 8% this month, the Dow Jones Industrial Average stands to end with its best September performance in 71 years. The Dow industrials rose 61 points to 10,897. The S&P 500 added 7 points to 1,152. The Nasdaq Composite gained 18 points to 2,395. It's been a great month and hreat year for a number of Dow components. Caterpillar leads the Dow with a year-to-date gain of 40%. DuPont holds the No. 2 slot with a gain of 32% so far in 2010, followed by a 21% rise for Boeing. Alcoa lags the group with a year-to-date loss of 25%. Microsoft is second-to-last with a drop of 19% so far this year. Microsoft's rivals, Google and Apple, continue to perform well. Research in Motion is higher once again on an upgrade. F5 Networks is higher on an upgrade. Qualcomm is higher on rumors their chips will go into the new iphone 5. The financials are up for once. The sector seems to be doing well thanks in part to the CEO from Deutsche Bank making positive comments about the third quarter. Deutsche Bank is up 4% on this news. Within the first hour the Dow screamed higher rising over 100 points while the Nasdaq rose 23 points. The averages gave up half their gains in the next half an hour. The commodity stocks are trading lower this morning. Noble Energy is down 4% on news of lower day rate pricing. In the retail space this morning Best Buy and Priceline are higher on upgrades. American Eagle is up 3% on takeover chatter. Restaurant company McCormick is up 3% following earnings. One takeover story this morning, Hypercom is jumping 45% after rejecting a buyout offer from Verifone. After the first hour the rally fizzled with the Dow only up 40 points and the Nasdaq up just 7 points. Through the morning the selling accelerated with the Dow dropping over 50 points and the Nasdaq declining 20 points. A big reversal to end the quarter. Can't blame people for profit-taking. In the afternoon the averages remain in the red with only a few financials in the green. The averages tried to rally back to the unchanged level only to sell back off into the close. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished down 47 points at 10,788. The S&P 500 index lost 3 points to 2,368. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 7 points to 2,368. For the month, the Dow rose 7.7% while the S&P 500 gained 8.8%. Both averages scored their best September in 71 years. The Nasdaq jumped 12% for the month, its best September since 1998.
September 29, 2010
U.S. stocks opened lower Wednesday as investors took back some of September's robust gains heading into the end of the quarter. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 14 points to 10,845. HP is one of the few Dow Components trading higher after raising guidance last night. The S&P 500 Index fell 2 points to 1,145. The Nasdaq Composite dipped 35 cents to 2,379. A couple of companies reporting earnings. Sealy is dropping 11% on a third quarter loss. Family Dollar actually looks good following better than expected earnings. Green Mountain Coffee is the dog of the day down 16% on an SEC inquiry into their accounting. After the first half an hour the averages remain in the red. The techs look the best with Apple and Google in the green. IBM is making new highs this morning. Even Research in Motion is higher by 2%. Jabil Circuit is up 3% on an upgrade. The financials are modestly lower once again. Prudential is higher on rumors they are close to buying AIG's Japanese unit. Barclays is lower even though their CEO stated they do not need any new money. Morgan Stanley is lower after getting their estimates cut. The commodities are modestly lower, but holding firm. Cliffs Natural Resources is up 1.5%. After the first hour the averages remain in the red with not a lot of volatility. During the lunch hour the averages moved to the unchanged level and hugged that level through the afternoon. Railroad company CSX is raising their dividend. That's a good sign. The stock is not reacting much. FedEx is performing well after announcing they will raise rates on some deliveries. In the last hour the averages sold back off when the U.S. dollar rallied. But into the close, the averages recovered off the lows. Resilient market. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished down 22 points at 10,835. The S&P 500 index dropped 2 points to 1,144. The Nasdaq Composite lost 3 points to 2,376.
September 28, 2010
U.S. stocks wobbled lower Tuesday in a shaky start ahead of data on consumer confidence. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 8 points to 10,810. The S&P 500 dropped a point to 1,141. The Nasdaq Composite shed 6 points to 2,364. End of the quarter and we're starting to see some profit-taking. Everything is under pressure. Apple is down a quick 2% on rumors one of their top executives is planning to leave to take over Hewlett Packard. Google is getting hit this morning. Research in Motion traded higher last night after announcing a playbook to compete with the Apple Ipad. However this morning, Research in Motion is down 4%. At 10 o'clock a weaker than expected consumer confidence number sent the averages tumbling. The Dow dropped 80 points while the Nasdaq declined 28 points. After the first hour the averages started to battle back. Resilient market. A few stocks are trading higher this morning. Walgreen is up 10% on better than expected earnings. The privatized correctional and detention facility company Correction Corp is up 4% after better than expected earnings. Paychex is unchanged after beating estimates. Nordstrom and Greenbrier are higher on upgrades. Through the morning the averages kept improving with the Dow rising into the green. The Nasdaq modestly in the red. Heading into the lunch hour the Dow moved into the green dragging the Nasdaq with it. Chevron, HP, Intel, and Travelers are leading the blue chip average higher. In the afternoon the averages remained strong, rallying into the close. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 46 points at 10,858, with 22 of its 30 components rising. Blue-chip gains were led by shares of Pfizer, up 1.5%, and Intel, up 1.4%. The S&P 500 index rose 5 points to 1,147 led by healthcare, up 0.9%, as well as the energy, consumer discretionary, and consumer staples sectors, all up about 0.8%. The Nasdaq Composite finished up 9 points at 2,379.
September 27, 2010
U.S. stocks opened mildly lower on Monday, with Wall Street retreating some after last week's strong gains, as health-care stocks in particular weighed on the market. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 2 points to 10,857. The S&P 500 declined a point to 1,147. The Nasdaq Composite declined 2 points to 2,378. Another week another acquisition. Unilever is buying Alberto Culver for $3.7 billion. Alberto is trading up 19%. IBM announced a small acquisition this morning. IBM is actually making a new 52 week high along with Apple so the techs are performing well this morning. Baidu is up 4% to a new high thanks to an upgrade. Google continues to move higher as well. In the commodity space, the fertilizers are performing well. Agrium is jumping 2% to new highs. LDK Solar is jumping 6% after announcing a financing deal in China. In the transportation space Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern are not reacting after receiving upgrades. JetBlue is up 6% on a positive Barrons article. After the first half an hour the averages remain in the red. The large cap financials are lower except for Goldman Sachs. Franklin Resources is higher on an upgrade. Through the morning and into the afternoon the averages remain quiet. The end of the quarter is on Thursday so many money managers are done and just waiting for the end of the month. In the last hour the averages moved lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended down 48 points at 10,812. There were 24 decliners among the Dow's 30 components, led by a 2.7% drop in Bank of America shares. The S&P 500 index dropped 6 points to 1,142 with the financial sector weighing the most, down 1.2%. The Nasdaq Composite fell 11 points to 2,369.